Happy Houndz Dog Obedience Training

30/03/2025

22/02/2025

Yippee!
We're fully booked for our courses starting in March 🐾
Now taking bookings for May!!

23/12/2024

Lots of wags & woofs and a Merry Christmas
to all our friends.
From Gerri & Lesley
Happy Houndz Dog Training🐾

07/11/2024

𝙅𝙪𝙙𝙜𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩.

Yesterday a passer by at the park felt the need to pass loud judgement on a dog I was working with when they were having a 'moment'. It wasn't kind, it wasn't helpful and it wasn't necessary.

Something I often hear from clients is how aware they are of the judgement of others when they are out with their dogs.

If their dog is lunging, barking or otherwise seen as behaving 'badly', they feel the weight of strangers' eyes on them. Sometimes the judgment is just an eye roll or a tut....sometimes it's more explicit - being shouted or sworn at. Either way they feel shamed and embarrassed.

I can say, almost certainly, that those doing the shaming have never had a reactive dog themselves. They have never had to deal with not getting the dog they hoped for. Never had to walk their dog at the crack of dawn or late at night in an attempt to avoid other people. Never felt their heart sink when something unexpected happens and their best laid plans go wrong. Never felt the mixed emotions of embarrassment, sadness and frustration when their dog kicks off yet again. Never cried when they've had to abandon another walk. Never felt dread at the sound of "it's ok...he's friendly". Never felt the pressure to correct their dog because they need to be seen to be 'doing something'.

For those feeling judged remember that other people's opinions affect you only as much as you let them. Take a deep breath, shake it off and move on. Easier said than done at first but, like any skill, it gets easier with practice. Don't compare your dog to others. No two dogs are the same and, as the saying goes, comparison is the thief of joy. Ditch the shame. It's corrosive and toxic. Do the best you can in any situation and seek help if you need it. If you do that no one can ask more of you. And know that you're not alone. For every eye roll you receive there's probably also someone who's watching sympathetically because they've been there.

And if you've caught yourself eye rolling and tutting and rushing to judgement try to put yourself in that person's shoes. No one enjoys being the person with 'that' dog. It's never what people planned and they are generally trying their best in a bad situation. When you see a reactive dog kicking off know that, in that moment, both the dog and its owner are having a hard time and ask yourself whether a critical comment from you is going to make things better for anyone?

Being the owner of a reactive dog is hard enough. Let's not make it any harder.

04/10/2024

Deny Entry to the UK for Ivan Balabanov due to Animal Cruelty Practices

29/09/2024

Yippeee!!
Tell your pooches -
Beginner's classes starting in Hope-
Weds 23rd Oct @ 1.15pm

09/06/2024

A dogs neck is a very delicate part of their body!

The neck and cervical spine contain the spinal cord, this is where the nerves of the front legs originate. Excessive paw licking is quite often misdiagnosed as allergies when it is in fact pain.

Putting stress on the neck can cause painful disc damage and shoulder problems

A dog has the same number of vertebrae as a giraffe (think about that before choking a dog)

One of the most important structures of the nervous system "The Vagus Nerve" originates at neck level and this controls life essential organs like lung, heart, stomach, and intestinal tract.

The Thyroid gland is located in the neck. If this gets inflamed the immune system trys to remove the inflamed cells.
The destruction of the Thyroid gland cells can lead to hypothyroidism

Increased pressure put on the Jugular vein can cause seizures
Ear and Eye issues are significantly increased

Being je**ed on a lead causes whiplash and bruising.

The epidermis of a dog is only 3-5 cells thick
A humans is 10-15 cells thick

So WHY would anyone want to use a noose ....sorry I mean a slip lead?

A well fitted Y shaped harness is the safest and kindest peice of equipment to use.

01/05/2024

⭐ Great RECALL session yesterday using food reinforcers and games with 4 year old Labrador Max. We'll progress this at the next session. ☆Never to late too late to work on that recall (or anything else)!
🐾Happy Houndz Obedience Training 🐾

29/04/2024

Meet Effie!!

Another newbie this week… a 2.5yr old ‘Newfypoo’… she’s a cross between a Newfoundland & Standard Poodle! She’s a big girl (40KG)… with A LOT of fur!

Effie came to us due to her owners ill health.. she’s a loveable girl with a big personality! Effie loves people - she’s very friendly and sociable… she’s not used to living with children, but could be homed in a home with older children.. she’s got a very placid nature.

Effie is great with other dogs, and has had play dates with some of the dogs in our care! She could go to a home with another dog - depending on a dog meeting. She’s not used to cats.

She loves her walks… playtime is the great.. but her favourite is water!! She loves a paddle and a swim 🙈. She will need an active home..

Due to her size, Effie has the potential to be very strong on the lead… however, for the most part she does walk nicely. Her new owners must have time to dedicate to her ongoing training.

Effie isn’t really used to be left on her own, so time along may need to be built up gradually.

Obviously due to her parents, Effie has a lot of fur and is minimal shedding - she will need regular grooming!

Enquiry form ⬇️
https://ashbourneanimalwelfare.org/dog-adoption-enquiry-form-2/

29/04/2024

Yesterday I read a post on a colleague's page which should have been entirely noncontroversial. The post stated that dogs shouldn't be regularly crated for 8 hours or more at a time. Incredibly some people pushed back hard on that point on the basis it excluded people who worked full time/long hours from having a dog.

And there's the rub. 𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙙𝙤𝙜. Much as they might want one. Not everyone's lifestyle is compatible with dog ownership. Which can be a bitter pill to swallow if you desperately want a dog in your life but that doesn't make it any less true.

Dogs need social contact*. They need space to move*. To deprive them of these things has a detrimental effect on their well being, no matter how loved they may be. So if the only way someone can fit a dog into their life is to leave it alone & crated for 8-10 hours every day they really need to do some soul searching and consider the dog's experience, not just their own wants.

If you do work out of the home for long hours and still want a dog in your life then you have to be prepared to pay for support to help you care for your dog - a dog walker, pet sitter, day care etc. And high quality, ethical pet care costs.

Does that mean that those who work long hours out of the home and can't afford high quality pet care can't have a dog? Yes, very possibly.

Owning a dog isn't a right. It's a responsibility which means that you have to consider the dog's welfare ahead of your own wants. There will be many such decisions along the way and the first one is whether your lifestyle can meet a dog's most basic needs. And if it can't, the answer should be 'no'.

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*𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘴:
• 𝘉𝘦𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘢 𝘉, 𝘚𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘔 𝘉 𝘏, 𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘰𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘑, 𝘥𝘦 𝘝𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘏 𝘞, 𝘔𝘰𝘭 𝘑 𝘈 (1998). 𝘉𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭, 𝘴𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘢, 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘺𝘱𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘪 𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘰𝘨𝘴, 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘈𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭 𝘉𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘚𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 58: 365-381.
• 𝘉𝘦𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘢 𝘉, 𝘉𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘢 𝘞, 𝘚𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘔 𝘉 𝘏, 𝘔𝘰𝘭 𝘑 𝘈, 𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘰𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘑 (1999𝘢). 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘤 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘰𝘨𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘰𝘯𝘦: 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝘗𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘉𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘳 66: 233-242.

09/03/2024

Happy 1st Birthday Banjo!! 🥳

Banjo is a happy Jack Russell x Papillon who has been ‘on hold’ for somebody for a few weeks, but he’s now back available for adoption!

He’s a really sweet natured lad with bags of character! He’s a lively little soul, and loves to run and play!

He could live in a family home with children over 5yrs, and could share his home with other dogs (depending on a dog meeting).

He would like a home with people who have lots of time to dedicate to his ongoing training, as well as plenty of exercise and play time!!

Enquiry form ⬇️
https://ashbourneanimalwelfare.org/dog-adoption-enquiry-form-2/